ATLANTA — Georgia Chancellor Sonny Perdue announced Wednesday that he will retire from his job overseeing the state’s 25 public colleges and universities, ending a career that spanned more than four decades, from service on a local zoning board to the cabinet of President Donald Trump, with two terms as governor in between.
“As I prepare to retire, I’m grateful for our presidents, faculty and staff, our students
and the many communities that make up this remarkable system,” Perdue said in a statement. He did not give a definitive date, saying he would leave the post after a national search finds a successor.
Just over four years ago, on April 1, 2022, Perdue assumed leadership of a higher education system that now has a $12.1 billion budget, with 54,000 employees and 382,000 students.
Enrollment has grown during his tenure.
“Under his leadership, the system has seen record enrollment, modernized campuses and advanced medical education, including the launch of UGA’s new School of Medicine,” Gov. Brian Kemp said in a statement, adding that Perdue’s time leading the University System of Georgia “has solidified a legacy of impact that will continue for generations to come.”
A native of Perry, Perdue attended undergraduate and graduate school at the University of Georgia, earning a veterinarian medical degree. He flew in the U.S. Air Force and owned an agricultural business.
He started his political career in the 1980s, on the Houston County Planning and Zoning Board, before making his way to the state Senate in 1991. He chaired the Senate Higher Education Committee and rose to the top rung for a senator as President Pro Tem.
In 2003, he made history by becoming the first Republican to occupy the Georgia governor’s office since Reconstruction, serving the maximum two terms. Trump, in his first term as president, then tapped Perdue as the 31st U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.
After his pivot to chancellor, Perdue focused on affordability, eliminating a fee that saved students hundreds of dollars a year. He also restrained tuition growth, with students on average paying less now than in 2017 when adjusted for inflation, according to the system.
On Tuesday, the system Board of Regents raised tuition by 1% for in-state students and by 3% for out-of-state students.
Despite Perdue’s attention to affordability, critics noted that Georgia higher education remained out of reach for many from low-income households.
Georgia was among just two states without a comprehensive scholarship program based on financial need.
Lawmakers finally addressed that this year, budgeting $325 million as seed money toward a need-based program to be called the DREAMS Scholarship Endowment Fund. They placed the program under the control of the Georgia Student Finance Authority, but the idea started as a small fund in the University System of Georgia Foundation, under the leadership of Perdue.
The national search for Perdue’s successor will be conducted by a committee of the Board of Regents, with help from a consultant and from former Chancellor Stephen R. Portch and former Georgia State University President Mark Becker.
After they find a successor, Perdue, who has served as a foster parent with his wife, Mary, will have more time to spend with their four children, 14 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat, an initiative of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
